In Ink
by Dmarx
Summary: Spiral Bound sequel. Years pass and memories fade with time, but his words never will. Because he wrote them down, every chapter of their story inked across the page for eternity.
1. Honeymoon

_Summary: Years pass and memories fade with time, but his words never will. Because he wrote them down, every chapter of their story inked across the page for eternity. Snapshots from the Spiral Bound universe._

_Author's Note: A couple things before we get started just to pre-emptively answer questions:_

_1. This is a sequel to Spiral Bound, but you don't necessarily need to have read that for this to make sense. Just know that this basically goes AU from just before the end scene of Watershed. In my version, they get engaged in July 2014 and married in Sept 2015._

_2. This will be different from Spiral Bound in that most chapters will stand alone. I'll put dates at the top of each chapter (date the chapter takes place) and each letter (date the letter was written) to help with the timeline._

_Disclaimer: Despite my best efforts, I still lay no claim to Castle and its characters._

* * *

**IN INK**

* * *

**Honeymoon**

**(December 2015)**

"Hey."

Castle lifted his head, a smile bursting from his lips, crinkling the corners of his eyes as his wife walked out of the bathroom. Her hair was still damp from their shower, dark curls falling around her shoulders. She wore a long, baggy t-shirt, one that she'd stolen from him two years ago and never relinquished her hold on, and nothing else, her legs completely exposed as she crossed to the bed, perched on the edge.

"Hey," she replied with a grin, hand coming to rest on his outstretched leg. "Whatcha doing?"

"Thought maybe we could read," he suggested, lifting one hand to reveal the front cover of their journal.

"Mmmm, it's been a while," she agreed.

Castle raised an eyebrow, smirked. "Unless you had other plans?"

"Castle."

"What?" he asked, eyelashes fluttering innocently, and Kate had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes at him.

"It's been half an hour. Tops."

"So?"

"So before that, there was against the front door."

"And the sofa," he reminded her with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Exactly."

"I fail to see what the problem is here."

This time, she actually did roll her eyes.

"You know, it's your fault," he protested.

"What is?"

"You wore that shirt today."

"What about it?" she asked with a saucy smile.

She was not going to admit it, but she may have slipped it on this morning knowing full well how much Castle enjoyed the way the fabric hugged her curves and revealed just enough cleavage to be teasing but not too much as to be unprofessional. Although the way he had stared at her all day, eyes unsubtly glued to her figure, was not even remotely professional. Neither was the way he plastered her against the outside of the building as they stepped onto the sidewalk to go get lunch, pressing her back against the brick as his hands bunched up the hem of her shirt, seeking the soft skin of her waist.

Normally, she would have pushed him away, scolded him gently for kissing her - intensely - while at work. But there was a ring on his finger now and two on hers, and it'd been three months but they were still completely wrapped up in it, overcome with a lack of restraint and an overwhelming amount of love. It wasn't as bad as when they'd first returned from their honeymoon, glowing and sex-addled, smiles a permanent fixture on their faces. But at times, it was still just too much, and they just couldn't fight it.

Castle gestured across the room to the pants that were tossed haphazardly on the floor, one pant leg inside out, the other bunched up. "And those jeans," he added, pulling her back to present.

"So?"

"So you can't dress like that and expect me to keep my hands off of you."

"I'm not dressed like that anymore," she reminded him mischievously.

"Oh, I know," he assured her, voice low and sexy. He reached out with his free hand to tug on the bottom of her shirt, urge her closer. "And I think I like this outfit even better."

"Castle."

"What?"

"It's been half an hour," she repeated.

"So?"

"So some of us need a few minutes, stud," Kate offered, patting his knee.

"Irrelevant," he replied instantly.

Kate raised an eyebrow.

"Ooo-kaaay," he sighed, pretending to be horribly inconvenienced, knowing all the while that she made a valid point. Despite her infinite sex appeal, he needed a break as well.

She smiled, scooted up the bed until she was seated next to him, back resting against the headboard. "Come on," she suggested lightly. "Let's read."

_September 8, 2015_

_Dear Kate,_

_We're married._

_I still can't believe it. And I don't think I'm ever going to be able to say those two words without making myself completely giddy. Because we're married. We're spending the rest of our lives together._

_You're my wife now._

_As I write this, you're in bed next to me, sprawled on your stomach with the sheet resting across your lower back. Your head is tilted towards me, and when I first woke up, I just laid there for a good ten minutes just watching you sleep. I know you say it's creepy, but I can't help myself. You're so beautiful._

_And you're the first thing I see every morning. There is absolutely no better way to start my day. Every day, for the rest of our lives._

_I'm so excited, Kate. I'm so excited for what lies ahead for us. But at the same time, I want to savor every moment, every memory, because they're all so special to me. I don't want to forget a single detail. Not that I ever could. I can't forget anything when it comes to you. I couldn't even if I tried. That's how strong of a grip you have on my heart._

_It's never been like this before. I know we both had our doubts. I've done this whole marriage thing before. Twice. And it didn't work out either time. I know that was a difficult thing for both of us to understand, and maybe I was never able to truly find the right words to explain it to you, but now I know why. Because there are no words. I've tried and tried to put into words how much I love you and all the reasons I feel that way, and I just can't do it. There are no words to describe the way I feel right now. None at all. And that's how I know, without a doubt, that marrying you was the best decision I've ever made. And it's how I know that this time, when I said "I do," I truly said it for the right reasons._

_Because I love you. So much._

_I could go on and on, I'm sure, because just looking at you brings forth a whole flood of feelings and the ring on my finger makes me so incredibly happy and the second band on yours makes me smile so hard my cheeks hurt. Actually, I think that's been the case for most of the last week, even since before the wedding._

_But this is quickly turning into a rambling, sappy love letter, and we're in Italy and you're naked next to me and it's our honeymoon, and I'm pretty sure I can think of a few other things I'd like to do at the moment. But I had to write to you this morning, because I can't think of any other way to accurately convey how I feel._

_I don't know when I'll write next as I'm sure we'll be quite – busy – for the next two weeks. Until then, I hope that you're enjoying our honeymoon as much as I am. And I hope you don't mind if we don't leave for our day of sightseeing until this afternoon. I have other plans for us this morning, Mrs. Castle._

_Love,_

_Rick_

Kate rolled her eyes at his last sentence but the gesture was sweet and affectionate. She was still Detective Beckett at the precinct, still introduced herself that way when she was working cases. But legally, she was Kate Castle now.

It still sounded strange to her ears, even after three months. Strange, but good.

"Mrs. Castle," he murmured, almost as though he was reading her mind .

"Hmmm?" she replied automatically.

"I like the sound of that."

Her answering smile was radiant.

"We're married," Castle spoke in awe, voice breathy and amazed.

"I know."

"I still don't think it's completely sunk in."

She shook her head in agreement. Sometimes she still woke in the morning feeling as though it was a dream. She was married to Richard Castle. Her favorite author, her partner, her best friend.

Her husband.

"Honestly," Kate began after a minute, a tint of a question in her voice, as though waiting for his approving nod before continuing. "I don't even remember most of it."

"The wedding."

"Yeah."

"Neither do I," he admitted.

"There was walking down the aisle, and there were our vows," she reminisced, recalling the elegant string of words he had spun together, easily reducing her to a puddle of loving tears.

"And our first kiss as husband and wife," he remembered with a tender smile.

"Mmmm," Kate acknowledged, feeling the ghost of his fingers on her jaw as he had cradled her cheek, pressed his lips to hers.

"And our first dance."

He smiled at the memory, Kate's arms laced around his neck, his looped around her back. He'd kissed her softly as he first drew her into his arms, holding her close as he rested his forehead against hers, neck tipped forward to make up for her lack of shoes. He thought he remembered whispering something to her about loving when she was barefooted and shorter than him, but it might just have been his imagination.

He remembered them purring sappy sentiments into each other's ears as they swayed to the music, the notes floating through the air over the background of the crashing waves. He definitely remembered the way he had allowed his arms to span out across her back about halfway through the song, one settling into the arch of her spine, the other coming to rest across the bare skin of her upper back. His touch alone had sent a shiver wracking through her body, coaxing a sharp exhale from his lungs at the feeling of her rippling against him, and he'd had to stop himself from unfastening her dress right then and there.

"Mmmm, yeah," she murmured, her soft hum pulling him back to the here and now.

"And you shoving cake in my face," Castle continued with a pleased grin.

"You smeared frosting all over me first," she countered.

"I was being decorative."

"You were being a four-year old."

He smiled innocently and she couldn't help but roll her eyes at the next words that left his mouth. "And you're stuck with me forever."

She whacked his chest but he was faster, capturing her hand before she could pull away, sliding his fingers into the gaps between hers as he gently pressed her palm flat against his chest.

"That I am," she whispered in agreement, the thought making her heart overflow with love.

If someone had told her when they first met that she would end up marrying the man who drove her absolutely crazy with his insistence on following her around and sticking his nose into everything and arrogantly parading around like a cop, she'd have snorted in disgust and had them banished.

And yet here she was, heart irreversibly twined with his, lives mingled into one.

Forever, with Castle.

* * *

_Thoughts/prompts/ideas? Send them my way!_


	2. Mrs Castle

_Author's Note: I sincerely apologize for how long it's taken me to update this. Long story short, my original plan to not post chapters in chronological order ended up being way too confusing, so I had to go back and do some serious outlining and restructuring. However, most chapters will still stand alone._

_Suggestions are still more than welcome – preferably sooner rather than later, though, since I won't be able to go back and add things in once the timeline is fully set._

* * *

**Mrs. Castle**

**(December 2015)**

"Want to keep going?" he asked in a low voice after a moment, their words still hanging softly over the silence in the room.

Kate murmured her assent, leaned in to rest her head against his shoulder, maintaining their connection even as he dropped her hand, reached out to smooth down the page.

The date at the top read two months after the wedding; a rather large gap in comparison to most of the entries. But they'd been, well, otherwise occupied, during their two weeks in Italy. And naturally, their first weeks back to the precinct post-honeymoon had been excessively stressful. Back to back cases, followed by a third just two days later that involved the death of a young single mother.

Things at the precinct had calmed down since then, but with the approaching holiday season and Castle's publicity obligations following the recent release of _Heat of the Moment,_ free time had been rather limited. He hadn't been to the precinct all that much in recent weeks, either. Not that he lacked inspiration. No, that was a constant in his life now. What he hadn't been able to find was time to sit down to write, opting instead to spend what little spare time he managed at the precinct, reprising his duties as Kate's partner.

But Black Pawn had thrown a party in mid-November, a book release for one of their up-and-coming writers, and he and Kate had attended. And after an evening with her by his side, dazzling everyone she met with her stunning looks and incredibly sexy and shimmery black dress, he hadn't been able to stop himself from digging out the journal and allowing the words to spill across the page.

Smooth and eloquent it was not.

But it was all his overwhelmed emotions could manage.

_November 14, 2015_

_Dear Kate,_

_I got to introduce you as my wife today. It's the first time I've gotten to do that. _

_It's also the first time I've heard someone else call you Mrs. Castle. _

_And it really got to me._

_I know, I know, you'd say I'm being dramatic, or ridiculous, or a sap. And maybe I am. It tends to happen, when I'm with you._

_We've been married for two months now, but sometimes it still seems surreal. Sometimes I still can't believe that it's not a dream. Today, though – today it really hit me. Hard. You're my wife. I'm going to spend the rest of my life introducing you as my wife, standing by your side as your husband._

_Years ago, I gave up on the dream of having a real family. After all, I had no father, an ex-wife. Then a second. I'd just accepted that it wasn't my lot in life. _

_Until I fell in love with you._

_We're a family, Kate. You and me, Alexis, my mother, your father. We're unorthodox, but we're a family. I know that technically we've been family for a while now. My mother's loved you practically since the moment she met you, and you've been living in the loft for two years. _

_But now you're Mrs. Castle._

_And somehow, it makes it seem so much more official. Permanent._

_I don't think I'll ever stop being overwhelmed by it._

"You like that, huh?" Kate whispered, voice low and sinfully husky at his ear.

Castle offered a nod, tried to force the words past the lump in his throat, but all that escaped was a rough, strangled sound.

"You like that I'm Kate Castle?"

She already knew the answer, of course, the questions merely designed to rile him up. Judging by his dark, hooded eyes, the lust swirling in their cobalt depths, she was succeeding.

"God," he groaned, slipping an arm between her back and the pillows and tugging her closer. She came without resistance, effortlessly rising to straddle his lap even as his fingers were already working the buttons on her – _his_ – shirt. She was naked underneath, and he was wearing only boxers, and both garments found their way to the floor, leaving a frenzied jumble of limbs in their wake.

The journal spent the night on the floor as well.

* * *

It was not until the next morning, not until she swung her legs out of bed and stepped on something soft and rectangular, that Kate realized they hadn't actually finished reading the letter.

Damn Castle and his ability to make her forget absolutely everything except for the feel of him hovering over her, surrounding her. The feel of them. She felt a familiar rush of arousal at the memory, the heat flickering through her veins like flames curling into the air. Kate closed her eyes tightly, took a deep breath to suppress it. She had to be at work in just over an hour. She really couldn't afford an early morning _detour_ today.

She bent over to retrieve the book from beneath her foot, made to set it aside. She was just about to stand, her hand releasing its grasp, when curiosity got the better of her, the desire to read the rest of what he'd written overwhelming the need to hop in the shower, prepare to face the day. Kate pulled the notebook back to her, flicked through to find the page, skimming the lines of script until the words no longer looked familiar.

_Meredith never wanted to take my last name. Said it would damage her career prospects. I fought it at first, but in the end I realized it was a battle I wasn't going to win. Gina was already a well-established professional, so it made sense that she'd keep her name. Truthfully, it didn't bother me all that much. Maybe that should have been my first clue that we wouldn't last._

_But in retrospect, I'm glad neither of them took my name. Because now you're Mrs. Castle. The one and only_ _Mrs. Castle. _

_And I wouldn't have it any other way._

_Love,_

_Rick_

Well.

That explained a lot.

Kate had never imagined giving up her last name. She'd always rather liked being Kate Beckett. It had a nice ring to it, good strong consonance. And it made her feel strong, powerful, independent.

But with Castle, it was different. With Castle, she didn't feel like she was giving anything up by changing her name.

They hadn't agreed on it at first, Kate adamant that she wanted to keep her name. It was not borne out of stubbornness, but rather a desire to maintain her professional reputation, the respect she'd garnered as Detective Beckett. But Castle persisted and they'd eventually decided on a compromise.

She'd never understood, though, why it was so intensely important to him. Why he'd been so resolute.

But all made sense now.

In retrospect, she had to admit that she was glad he'd kept pushing, glad that he wore her down. A thrill still ran down her spine every time she signed her name, and she was powerless to stop the heat that flooded her body every time he addressed her as Mrs. Castle, the words rolling off his tongue so smoothly.

The dip of the mattress behind her right hip signaled his awakening, and sure enough, she soon felt his arm loop low around her hips, the warmth of his body at her back. His lips found the curve of her spine, brushed feather-light across the tender skin at the base of it.

"Morning," he murmured into her skin, breath warm against her, and a shiver raced through her.

"Hey," she whispered, voice rough with sleep and emerging arousal and overwhelming love for this man.

Castle pressed his elbow into the bed, scooted himself up so that his head rested on her pillow, chin brushing the side of her bare thigh. His eyes fell to the journal resting on the table of her legs and he lifted further, squinted at the page.

"Reading without me?" he teased

"Maybe?"

"Anything good?"

She shrugged lightly. "Just finishing the one from last night."

"Oh. Right," he stated, voice full of amusement. Apparently she wasn't the only one who'd forgotten.

Castle dropped his eyes back to the page and she watched adoringly as his gaze flicked back and forth, taking in the words with genuine interest.

"I didn't know," Kate offered only once his eyes stilled at the end of the letter.

"Hmmm?"

"I didn't know why it meant so much to you."

He hummed softly, nuzzled against her arm, just breathing her in. His free arm was still laced low across her back, fingers resting in the crook of her opposite hip. Kate could feel the cool press of his wedding ring against her skin, a stark contrast to the heat of his touch. She lifted her arm, fingers unfurling to comb through his hair, gently teasing through the soft strands, the gesture tender and bubbling over with love.

Silence descended then in the wake of her words, his near-silent acknowledgement. It wasn't uncomfortable or awkward, but lazy and serene as they enjoyed their last few moments cuddled in bed, basked in the quiet intimacy.

At long last, Kate deftly closed the journal, fingers of her right hand slipping from his hair as she leaned forward to replace the book on her nightstand. She stood, dislodging Castle's arm from around her, and the limb reluctantly fell to the bed.

She turned, leaned down to press a soft kiss to Castle's lips. He smiled into the brush of her mouth, sleepy eyes opening languidly as she pulled away. She grinned back, so affectionate, so in love, the expression never falling from her face as she crossed to the master bath.

Castle craned his neck to watch her go, eyes briefly locking with hers before the door snicked shut between them.

Only once the sound of water in the pipes echoed through the walls did he throw back the covers, extricate himself from the cozy fortress of their bed. He shrugged on a bathrobe, made his way to the kitchen, retrieved two mugs from the cupboard even as the coffee pot was already springing to life.

For all the things that had changed in the last four months as they'd settled into married life, some things remained exactly the same. And though he got to kiss her good morning now, though they no longer needed a steaming cup of caffeine to supplement that which for so many years went unsaid, it was a part of them.

Always would be.

Only now, instead of a brilliant smile, she would lean in and drop a tender kiss to his mouth as he passed her a fresh mug of the hot liquid, her whispered thank you muffled by the press of their lips.

And every morning as she took the first sip, the caffeine suffusing her veins, she could hear his voice in her head, the words meant just for her.

_I love you._

* * *

_Thoughts?_


	3. Missed Moments

_Author's Note: For Simplymaterial, who gave me the prompt for this chapter. I don't remember the exact words, but it was something along the lines of "all the missed moments between them." I hope this is at least somewhat close to what you were envisioning._

* * *

**Missed Moments**

**(January 2016)**

"Hey, you."

"Mmmm," Kate purred, snuggling up to him beneath the covers. "Whatcha doin'?"

He tilted the journal in her direction, the spiral binding trapped between two fingers, a pen gripped loosely in his other hand.

"Writing?"

He hummed, nodded.

"About the case?"

Another nod.

Kate lifted a hand to scrape the hair out of her face, propped herself up on one elbow and leaned in to sneak a peek between the pages. "What did you write?"

"Nuh uh, no fair reading ahead," Castle scolded mildly.

She snorted, reached for the book. But her other arm was caught beneath the blankets and he was faster, easily leaning out of her way and extending his arm as far out to the side as it would go. Nevertheless, Kate freed herself from the covers, lunging across the bed after him. At which point she promptly found herself gracelessly sprawled on top of him, the journal still slightly out of reach.

"Castle," she grunted.

He raised an eyebrow, eyes smoldering sexily. "Yes?"

She huffed a sigh, feigning irritation. "Ugh, fine. You win."

"I'm sorry, what was that?" he asked, eyes lighting up like a kid on Christmas morning. "Can you say that again?"

"Absolutely not."

"I won, you said?"

Kate whacked him upside the head. "Shut up."

"I will do no such thing."

Without preamble, her agile fingers found his ear, clamped down over the lobe.

"Ow, ow, ow, apples!" he screeched, the sound decidedly un-masculine.

Kate flashed him a self-satisfied smile as she relinquished her hold, and Castle glared, though the adorable case of bedhead he was sporting greatly lessened the effect. As did the mock pout.

After a stubborn staring contest that morphed into Castle shooting Kate a sappy smile and her shaking her head adoringly, he finally tossed the pen aside, passed her the notebook. Kate nimbly flicked through to the page of the next unread letter. To her surprise, however, the next entry wasn't on a page. It was on a folded sheet of yellow legal pad paper, probably swiped from her desk at the precinct. She unfolded the paper, fingers gently smoothing out the crease.

_December 3, 2015_

_Dear Kate,_

_Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to keep my hands off of you at work today? Twelve hours at the precinct and I couldn't even touch you, when all I wanted to do was, well, touch you. All over._

Kate flushed as she read the words, a shiver tripping up her spine at the mere thought of his large hands on her skin, palms warm and fingers splayed wide. God, she absolutely loved the things he could do to her with just a simple touch.

_It's been almost two years now. Two years since we moved in together, three and a half since we got together. And I'm still not sure I'm ever going to get used to the perfectly awful timing of the murderers of Manhattan. Middle of the night and early morning crime scenes don't bother me all that much anymore. But the way your phone manages to ring right in the middle of a conversation or, well, me taking your clothes off..._

_Sometimes I think the universe is out to thwart our every attempt to be a couple. _

_Think about it; how many times have we been rudely interrupted? Not just by your phone, but by the guys at the precinct or my family or even just a sudden thought regarding the case. I lost count years ago. _

_I love your job, and I love being your partner. Don't get me wrong. But just once, I'd like to spend an uninterrupted day alone with you, where we can relax and talk and, well, do other things, without having to worry about the outside world bursting into our little bubble. _

_When we get home tonight, I'm hiding your phone and locking the bedroom door behind us. And then I'm going to show you exactly how much I've been wanting you. All day long._

_Love,_

_Rick_

Kate smirked as she finished reading, pretending to take offense, though they both knew that she secretly loved his possessiveness, the fierceness with which he desired her. He was hot when he was possessive. And though she didn't remember this specific day, she did recall rather clearly more than once occasion on which they'd come home to the loft and promptly found themselves naked and climbing each other's bodies, desperate with want, begging for release.

It was hot as hell. And it made every frustrating moment of the day so very worth it in the end.

"Do you ever wonder?" Castle spoke suddenly.

Kate startled, had to draw her wandering, lustful thoughts back to present. "Wonder what?"

"About all the times we've been interrupted."

"You mean, what would've happened if we hadn't been?"

He nodded absently, eyes far away as though lost in thought. Kate too allowed herself to be swept up, mind drifting back through all the _so close_ moments over the years. And there had been quite a lot of them.

"Be honest," she inquired, suddenly curious. "After the dirty bomb, what were you really going to say?"

"I wanted to ask you out," Castle answered. "I know you weren't single but I just...we almost died. I thought the least I could do would be to offer to take you to dinner."

Kate smiled. "I would have gone with you."

Truth be told, she'd much rather have gone home with Castle that night.

"How about the _Heat Wave_ launch party?" she asked after a moment, pulling forth another moment from the recesses of her mind.

Castle tilted his head, brow furrowing.

"When I read the dedication," Kate clarified.

"Did we get interrupted?"

"No, just – you seemed like you were going to say something and then suddenly you started talking about the case."

Oh. Right. The perfect moment that morphed into a petty argument, all because his doubts got the better of him.

"I was, uh, going to ask you out for drinks."

"Why didn't you?"

"Because I didn't think you'd say yes," he answered as though it was obvious. "I mean, you always seemed to hate me."

"I never hated you, Rick."

"I know that _now_."

She hummed in reply.

"Would you have said yes?"

"I..." she began, hesitated. "Probably. I mean, I was expecting it."

"Really?"

She reached up, lovingly patted his cheek. "Subtle you are not, Castle."

He narrowed his eyes, feigning offense. Kate smiled sweetly.

"What about the case with the magician?" Castle asked suddenly, a spark of interest and excitement flashing through his eyes as he latched onto her curiosity.

"What about it?"

"You almost kissed me," he recalled proudly.

Kate scoffed. "I did not."

"You so did. When we solved the case."

She quirked an eyebrow.

"And that's not the only time, either."

The eyebrow arched higher. "Oh no?"

"I'm not the only one in this room who lacks subtlety."

She rolled her eyes but couldn't deny that he was probably right. He'd told her on more than one occasion that she had a subconscious tendency to stare at his mouth.

"I think it was a good thing, though."

Kate cocked her head curiously.

"The interruptions. All the other reasons we held back. I think it was the universe's way of telling us that it was too soon."

"The universe, huh?"

He nodded solemnly.

"Well, in that case..." She plucked the journal from his hands, pressed it shut and set it aside. She rose to her knees on the bed, twisting around to straddle his thighs. "I think I hear the universe telling us to celebrate."

"Celebrate what?"

"Our impeccable timing."

"I'd say our timing was far from, _oh, _impeccable," Castle groaned as her hands trailed down his chest, the cool tips of her fingers slipping beneath the hem of his shirt and dancing over his skin.

"We're here now, aren't we?"

His abs contracted beneath her teasing touch and he had to force the words out through the fog that was already descending over his mind. "That we are."

Kate leaned in alluringly, close enough that her breath washed over his lips with every word. "Then I'd say that in the end, our timing was pretty damn perfect."

* * *

_Thoughts?_


End file.
